"Continue?" Isaya glanced at Haunter, who was brimming with excitement, then turned her gaze to Johan.
The Academy's "tower climbing" record was twelve levels.
However, in recent years, no one had been able to reach or surpass the tenth level.
After all, the strength of the Pokémon sent out was adjusted according to the challengers' Pokémon, and the difficulty steadily increased. Achieving a high level wasn't something that could be done by simply bulldozing through with brute force.
Moreover, the stronger the challenger's Pokémon, the harder it was to climb higher.
"Ka-kah!"
Haunter removed its sunglasses and nodded vigorously.
Of course, keep going!
It wore an expression of "I'm feeling super brave!"
"Not today," Johan replied with a smile, declining the offer.
"Ka-kah?"
Haunter looked at Johan, confused.
What about our bond of trust?!
Johan glanced at Haunter with a hint of amusement.
"Weren't you just saying you wanted to eat a whole Tauros? Or would you prefer to head over to the Pokémon Center for dinner instead?"
Oh right!
Haunter quickly came to its senses, and in a flash, it zipped back to Johan's side and gave him a solid lick with its tongue.
"Ka-kah—"
Johan still cares about me.
Wait, where's my unfinished ice cream?
Isaya and the surrounding students showed a bit of disappointment.
They had hoped to witness Johan and Haunter create a new record.
But Johan knew that breaking the twelve-level record would be tough for Haunter in its current state.
While Haunter seemed to breeze through earlier battles, that Hypno, if it had fought under normal conditions, would have given Haunter a significant challenge.
And the Gyarados was an even greater threat, forcing Haunter to use its ace strategy: Sub-Protect-Toxic.
Although Haunter didn't get physically hit, the move Substitute was a massive drain on its energy.
Plus, Haunter currently lacked any self-recovery moves.
With future opponents bound to grow even stronger, continuing the climb might lead to injuries.
They had already earned the highest reward, so there was no need to push further.
If Haunter could master a move like Dream Eater to sustain itself, it might have been a different story.
In any case, quick-moving students had already uploaded videos of Johan and Haunter's "Ten-Win Streak" to the campus forum.
The videos stirred up quite the buzz.
Within the walls of Rustboro Academy, an emerging fanbase had even formed without Johan realizing it—a group called the Grain Fan Club!
"Professor Johan, here's your prize." Isaya handed over a box with a smile. Inside was a set of elemental gems.
"Thank you."
"Ka-kah~~ ()"
Pokémon Center
Haunter squinted contentedly while receiving a quick recovery treatment from Nurse Joy and her Chansey. Its expression was cheeky enough to make both Nurse Joy and Chansey giggle.
Steven and the others didn't follow along this time.
Having witnessed Johan and Haunter's impressive "streak," they were inspired to dive back into their own battles, ready to "beat up some rookies."
Johan felt a sense of relief seeing that Steven had been quite busy lately, presumably training hard or preparing for some competition.
Opening the prize box, Johan found the elemental gems arranged neatly inside, with only the Dragon Gem and Fairy Gem missing.
He casually picked up a Fire Gem.
Too bad it's not a Fire Stone, but it should still be worth quite a bit, right? he thought.
If the reward had been a set of Evolution Stones, the Academy would have probably gone broke.
After all, each Evolution Stone costs millions, and a full set could likely feed Haunter for a long time.
Wait a minute…
Johan's thoughts came to a halt.
Haunter had evolved, which meant its appetite and dietary quality requirements were bound to increase.
A wave of pressure washed over Johan once more.
He carefully put the gems away and rubbed his temples.
I really need to keep earning money to support these two gluttons.
Seems like I'll have to speed up my progress on learning how to make Pokéblocks.
In truth, Johan had been learning how to make them for some time, with Daisy's guidance, but he still didn't have a Berry Blender of his own. Constantly borrowing the school's equipment for practice wasn't a sustainable solution.
And Berry Blenders weren't exactly cheap—definitely pricier than a coffee machine.
If only there were more wealthy clients like that 'Eevee Eats Cabbage' lady…
Johan sighed inwardly.
"Professor Johan, it's about time."
"Ka-kah~~"
Haunter got up and stretched, clearly enjoying the massage.
It hadn't been injured, so all it needed was a simple recovery session, which didn't take long at all.
Thanking Nurse Joy, Johan resumed exploring the Academy grounds with Haunter and Alolan Vulpix.
Haunter put its armor back on, and after showing off with Alolan Vulpix over their giant ice cream sundae, it all ended with…
Click—
Johan took a picture and uploaded it to his online profile, captioning it, "Autumn Ice Treats."
As Johan gained some notoriety online, he occasionally posted about daily life or shared tips about Pokémon.
However, he rarely replied to comments, as he was swamped with questions from the online psychological consultation room.
Later…
Johan took Haunter and Alolan Vulpix out for Tauros BBQ.
Then, they enjoyed a Kantonian-Style massage at the Machamp Massage Parlor.
They stopped at the Smeargle Photography Studio for some commemorative photos.
Lastly, they watched an Eevee performance at the "Eevee Performance Club," wrapping up the busy evening.
Overall, this Academy Festival had been a lot of fun for them.
When they got home…
Haunter skillfully pulled out its phone and began watching the still-ongoing Bibarel Adventures series with Alolan Vulpix.
Johan was pretty sure this show had no end in sight. A series with each episode being a standalone story? How could it possibly conclude?
Meanwhile, Johan dealt with the soreness in his back, still bruised from the Machamp massage.
He added nutrients to the Pokémon Egg incubator while browsing the latest news.
Something interesting caught his eye.
"Lance VS Lorelei, Dragons vs. Ice Showdown!"
The headline detailed the showdown between Lance and Lorelei, even mentioning a Lapras vs. Dragonite battle.
The result ended with a forced one-for-one between the two Pokémon, almost a mirror of Johan's earlier battle with Professor Kukui.
"Man, Lance's 'Blaze' Charizard is kinda broken—he can even one-shot a Thick Fat Dewgong…"
As he was reading, a friend request notification popped up on his phone.
[Forever Eighteen]: What should I do if my Pokémon is too self-absorbed?
Forever Eighteen? Johan raised an eyebrow.
Anyone using a name like "Forever Eighteen" was almost certainly past that age—that was Johan's "life experience."
However, the person's question did seem related to Pokémon psychology, so he accepted the request.
[Grain in the Field]: Could you describe the details? After all, confidence isn't necessarily a bad thing.
[Forever Eighteen]: What if they feel like they'll die if they don't look in the mirror every day… that kind of 'confidence'?
Uh…
Johan ran his hand over his forehead.
That felt like a personal attack.
The person then sent a photo.
It was a Smoochum staring at itself in a mirror, carefully applying lipstick.
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Powerstones?
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